


Apples and Wishes

by AmazingGraceless



Series: Apples and Snakes Saga [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Apples and Snakes, Gen, extras
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-30
Updated: 2015-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-18 18:16:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29862141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmazingGraceless/pseuds/AmazingGraceless
Summary: A short story collection of alternative endings and perspectives within the Apples and Snakes Saga
Series: Apples and Snakes Saga [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2195457





	1. Alice Potter and the Family Reunion

**Author's Note:**

> This is a slightly alternate version of Apples and Snakes for if she ends up with Draco. I kept getting this idea, and had to type it out. I was inspired by Dinner with the Dursleys by defying3reason. So thanks for the inspiration! Feel free to check that out, too! This was written back when the fic was called Alice Potter and the Gryffindor Patriarchy and Alice was going to be a Hufflepuff instead of a Slytherin.

I looked over my children one last time. The only reason that we weren't going to Grimmauld Place was because Malfoy Manor had more room, and was meant for visitors, with the lavish gardens and luxurious living rooms and dining rooms.

"Remember, no matter how nasty your Great-Uncle Vernon and Great-Aunt Petunia are, as well as Dudley, you are not allowed to hex them, or be nasty right back? Understand?" I asked. Scorpius dutifully nodded. Cedric looked to be considering it, but thought better of it. Lyra just smiled cheerfully, and nodded. I looked up at my husband. "Draco, that applies to you, too."

He smiled wryly. "I promise that I won't hex Uncle Harry either." He assured the kids. I rolled my eyes. Every time he talked about that, I half-expected the kids to ask him to do it again. Everyone preferred to forget that Potter-Weasley family reunion. This was just for the Potters, and Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon and Dudley. Dudley's wife and kids refused their invitations, but the others grudgingly accepted, probably to make us miserable.

"Here they come." I said, bracing myself.

First came Harry, Ginny, Teddy, and their kids. Harry, like Draco, was in a suit and tie, although Draco's was all black, and Harry's tie was a fluorescent green. I looked over to James, Albus, and Lily, and embraced them all.

"How are all of you?" I asked, after I broke from the group hug. "Lily, you're getting to be such a blossom. Albus, you've definitely grown taller. And you, James, why, I almost don't recognize you, you're such a handsome young man."

I straightened to see Teddy, and shook his hand. "How are you, Teddy? Tell Andromeda that it's been too long, she ought to come over for tea at some point."

Teddy grinned, and his hair turned electric blue. "Will do, God-Mom."

"Harry!" I gave him a huge hug. We broke away, and gave Ginny a less affectionate but still genuine hug. Harry and Draco stood there for a moment, and finally, they reluctantly shoo hands, cold fury in both their eyes, and let go as soon as they felt I was satisfied by their handshake.

Ginny walked right over, and began to shake his hand in a friendly manner, and then tightened, and her smile became grim. Bones cracked, and Draco gasped in pain. I gave her a warning glare, and she let go immediately, as if she'd been holding a dung-bomb.

"Can we get through?" Uncle Vernon demanded. We parted, to let the last three guests into the foyer.

"Dark, grim place." Aunt Petunia muttered.

"It's been in my family since William the Conqueror came over." Draco said, trying to jump-start the conversation.

"William the Conqueror? What would he want with your kind?" Uncle Vernon demanded.

"Armand Malfoy provided services for him." Draco said coldly. Ginny smirked at the idea of what "services" were provided.

"Would you like to come into the dining room?" I requested. They all followed me into the scene of gothic perfection. Food in silver dishes with the mark of Malfoy embellished on them sat on blood-red table cloths, and silver dishes with the mark of Malfoy sat in perfect settings with matching silverware, with shining crystal goblets.

Draco froze, being the last one to enter the room. After all of these years, I know what he was thinking. He was thinking of how many Death Eater meetings occurred around that very table. He was thinking of how Charity Burbage was murdered and eaten by a snake on that very table. He was thinking of what he could've done to stop it, but didn't.

"Boy!" Uncle Vernon called to Draco. "What's the matter with you?"

 _PTSD is no laughing matter,_ I thought. I squeezed Draco's hand with my right, and used my left to lift up his chin, make him look into my eyes, see that everything turned out alright in the end. "Ignore him." I whispered in a barely audible breath.

He nodded, and took his seat at the head of the table. Everyone began eating, until the conversation started up.

"Aunt Petunia, are you the one who raised Mummy?" Lyra asked sweetly.

Aunt Petunia frowned. "Unfortunately." She said.

"You sound almost as bad as Grandma and Grandpa when they talk to Daddy." She said.

Aunt Petunia recoiled. Draco turned pink. "Insolent child!" She slapped her. Everyone took in a breath. I remembered every slap, every kick, every punch and pinch. I was gasping for breath. Not her.

"Get out of my house." I snarled in a low voice, standing up.

"Restrain your wife, boy!" Uncle Vernon barked.

Draco just stood there, silent.

"Boy, I'm talking to you!" Uncle Vernon roared, leaping to his feet. "What is it with these magical types? Eccentrics, I'm telling you, they should all be put to death."

Draco pulled up his shirt sleeve on his left arm, revealing the Dark Mark. Everyone except Uncle Vernon and Dudley.

Uncle Vernon sneered. "Trying to impress me with your magical tattoo, punk?"

"No!" Harry and I quickly pulled out our wands, and pointed at Draco, who looked ready to draw his own.

"This isn't intimidation, not to someone who isn't from the Wizarding world anymore." Draco explained, surprisingly calm. "This tattoo, though, is the result of me being just like you, Vernon Dursley, at sixteen."

Uncle Vernon sneered even more.

"I believed that all muggles and muggle-borns deserved to die, that they weren't worthy." Draco continued, unfazed. Harry's kids were staring. "I joined the Death Eaters, and watched people die, and even killed a few of them. Maybe if I'd made different decisions, I wouldn't have caused my children to have a stigma, or any of those deaths."

"We've been eating with a killer?" Uncle Vernon exclaimed.

"Goodbye." Aunt Petunia said. She and Uncle Vernon began striding out, when they stopped, realizing that Dudley hadn't followed them.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" He cried, looking at me and Harry. "I said and did such horrible things to both of you."

"What caused the change?" I asked.

"My daughter, Julia, she got accepted into Hogwarts last March." Dudley explained.

I smiled. "I guess we'll see you on the station, then."

* * *

"I just couldn't stand it," Draco explained, as we sat in the study, watching the rains. "I promised myself that I'd never let it happen again. I wouldn't contribute to it, I wouldn't let it go unchecked, never again."

"Never again," I agreed.


	2. Bank Heist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't resist writing the robbing of Gringotts that would have occurred in this AU. Have basically people who hate the carp out of each other (Harry, Ron, and Hermione hate Draco because of their rivalry, Ky hates Harry for how he treats Alice, Ron, Hermione, and Harry hate Ky because they think he's a traitor, Draco hates Ky because Ky had a much higher rank than Draco, and Ky absolutely despises Draco because he was bullied by that kid for being a mudblood geek), try to rob a bank. The banter. Come on guys. It has to be at least decent. 

"Are you sure that Gringotts is the answer?" Hermione asked the two boys who were already plotting a bank heist.

"He'd've probably been jealous of anyone with a vault in Gringotts," Harry explained. "Would've seen it as a key to the Wizarding world, a sign of truly belonging. Something he always wanted, right from the get-go."

"But which vault would it be?" Hermione asked.

"Easy, Granger," Draco drawled. "It's the Lestrange vault."

"How do you know?" Ron asked. "Are you leading us into a trap for your little Death Eater buddies?"

"Relax, he won't," Ky interjected. He glanced over at Draco, and they nodded at each other. "We've both got someone who needs us on this side, Potter. I can definitely assure you that I will be dedicated completely to your cause. But they don't know that. We can use that to our advantage."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, folding her arms over her chest.

"Remember how I had Potter act like her Imperiused me and Malfoy?" Ky asked.

"Vividly," Harry answered.

"Say that I returned, and escaped from one of the rebel scum's bases," Ky said with a shrug. "And Malfoy, too. That takes care of two of us."

"I found a hair of Bellatrix Lestrange's," Hermione offered. "I've got some Polyjuice ready to go."

"Good, good," Ky said, nodding. "Now for Weasley and Potter," he said, pacing the length of the room.

"Don't forget, we need Griphook," Harry interrupted.

"Quiet, Potter, I'm thinking about that!" Ky snapped. He paced a few more lengths, and stopped. "Wait, Potter, do you still have that Invisibility Cloak?"

"How do you know about that?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

"Your sister let a few things slip," Ky replied. "But the point is, do you have it?"

Harry nodded.

"Good, then we'll have you and Griphook follow us under the Invisibility Cloak, we'll have Granger posing as Lestrange, Malfoy and I have an explanation, and all we need to take care of now is paying the goblin and disguising Weasley," Ky explained. "Got any ideas?"

"I'm quite good at human Transfiguration," Hermione said. "So, I could transfigure Ron's features enough that no one knows who he is."

"That should work," Ky said. "And for the goblin?"

"We don't give him the sword until we're done slaying the Horcruxes?" Harry suggested.

"Have you guys thought about using Fiendfyre?" Draco interjected. "I heard that it can destroy just about anything."

"It's too dangerous!" Hermione protested.

"Come along, Granger, we can't risk a goblin's wrath," Draco argued.

"It's better than something that could kill us!" She cried.

"We can control it," Ky assured her with a glance at Draco. "Trust me, we've learned how, and we've practiced."

"Are you sure?" She arched an eyebrow.

"Come on, you've got to trust us, Granger, if we're to rob a bank together," Ky said.

"Why should we trust you when you were Death Eaters a few hours ago?" Ron burst out.

"Well, I can't defend Draco," Ky said with another quick glance of dislike at him. "But I can tell you that I've been spying for your sister, Potter. Magic book, anyone?" He pulled a slightly battered diary with Alice's handwriting sprawled all over the pages.

"Fine," Harry agreed reluctantly. "Let's get started then. Tomorrow, we're robbing a bank."

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" Hermione, now dressed in black and having the appearance of Bellatrix Lestrange, whispered to Ky.

"I will be if you give up that attitude," he hissed. "We have to act like royalty, Lestrange."

To prove his point, he drew himself up to his full height, and went ahead with Draco, as the procession and guard for Hermione and Ron, and Harry in his invisible state.

Ky had to brace himself for what he saw as soon as the doorway opened to Diagon Alley. Muggle-borns in filthy robes, starving and exhausted and utterly defeated-looking, crowded the sides of the shop, holding out something, whether it be hat or cup or pillowcase, to collect money in.

The muggle-borns glared up at the oncoming parade of Death Eater affiliates. Particularly evil hissing went to Ky, until a man lunged at him, grabbing him by the front of his robes.

"You were one of us, Emrys!" He growled. "One of us, and you act like some lofty 'pureblood.' You're the real blood traitor around here."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ky said, lying calmly with a cold mask of indifference. "Sir, please let go of me now, or I will be forced to make you let go."

"Of course you do," the man snarled. "I can see it in your eyes. Blood traitor."

" _Relashio_! _Flipendo_!" The man was forced to let go and went flying against the walls of one of the once-colorful shops. " _Crucio_."

The man let out a horrible scream, and all of the muggle-borns, robbed of their power, glared up at Ky with hatred and fear.

"Unless the rest of you would like to join him, make way for Lady Lestrange!" He ordered. Reluctantly, the rest of the muggle-borns shifted to make the cobblestones clear.

Somehow, Ky continued to hold his head up high as he, Draco, Hermione, and Ron strutted down the streets as some of the purebloods had on the trips before to Diagon Alley.

"That comes a bit too easily to you," Harry hissed from behind.

"I did what I had to do, Potter," Ky hissed back coldly.

"I'm sure you don't have to do that much for Alice," Harry continued. "I wonder how she'd react if I told her the story."

Ky shrugged, not letting Harry see how much the idea bothered him. "Come on, Potter, we've got a bank to rob."

Finally, they approached the white shiny building. Hermione strutted straight up to the goblins.

"I would like to visit my vault," she said imperiously.

"Very well, may I see your wand, Lady Lestrange?" The goblin asked with a wicked grin.

" _Imperio_ ," Harry cast.

"Ah, you're cleared to go," the goblin said. "I will prepare a cart." The group followed him to the cart, and then Ky stunned him.

"Was that really necessary?" Hermione asked.

"Want to talk ethics with me?" Ky retorted as he sat beside her. "Let's talk about Potter's Unforgivable."

"Hey, I did what I had to do!" Harry protested.

"Same for me," Ky said as Griphook got out and started the cart. "We don't need an extra goblin."

"Fine," Hermione reluctantly agreed. "Let's just find Hufflepuff's Cup and get out of here."

"Hufflepuff's Cup? That's what we're after?" Draco asked eagerly.

"Yes," Ron barked coldly.

"What are Horcruxes, by the way?" He continued.

"They're really foul, Malfoy," Ky interjected. At the very thought of the process which Voldemort had described, he vomited over the side.

"Was that really necessary?" Ron asked, wincing.

"You don't know how they're made, Weasley!" Ky snapped. "And you don't want to! It is an absolutely revolting process."

"How do you know about them?" Harry asked.

"Ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no lies," Ky said, some mischief restored to his face.

Then came the roar of a waterfall.

"The Thief's Downfall!" Griphook cried. "It washes away all enchantments!"

"How do we avoid it?" Draco called out.

"Simple- we don't!" Griphook replied, as the waterfall washed over the group, and they fell off of the cart.

" _Arresto Momentum_!" Hermione cried, and their fall was stopped, inches above sharp rock.

"Thanks, Granger," Ky said.

"We're close to the vault," Draco said suddenly. Indeed, they only walked a few paces before they'd found a dragon in front of a vault.

"This is the right one!" Draco cried.

Griphook grabbed large iron bars, and clanged them together. The dragon shrank back in fear of pain. The dragon was old and scales were falling out.

"The poor creature," Hermione muttered.

"This is not the time for dragon rights, 'Mione," Ron said, as he ushered her into the vault.

"Be careful," Draco warned. "If we touch anything, it'll multiply, and burn."

"There it is, though." Ky pointed at the cup, on top of a pile of treasure.

"How do we get it?" Hermione asked.

"And you're the brightest witch of your age- use the Sword of Gryffindor!" Ky yelled.

"I don't have it!" Harry cried. Then they saw Griphook, who held it, smirk and disappear.

"Alright then, time to get burned," Ky muttered, and he started climbing the treasure as it multiplied underneath him.

"What are you doing, you prat?" Draco called up.

"Getting your ****** cup!" Ky yelled, grateful for the gloves, although he could certainly still feel the heat. Finally, he grabbed onto the Cup and didn't let go, despite the terrible burning that was searing through his gloves, and he jumped off. "Go, before the treasure buries us!" He ordered.

Ron, Harry, Hermione, and Draco reluctantly obeyed. The dragon roared, and they hid behind pillars.

"Anyone here Parselmouths?" Ky asked.

"Me!" Harry cried out.

"I am," Draco said suspiciously.

"Well, remember how Alice got past the Kohaku dragon?" Ky asked.

"No!" Harry said.

"Yeah," Draco said, and then his eyes widened, his face frozen in horror. "You want me to _talk_ to that thing?"

" _He's_ a living creature!" Hermione protested.

"Not the time, Hermione!" Ron and Harry chorused.

"You're the one with dragon in his name," Ky said. "So go make some friends, Draco." He pushed him out in front.

Draco started hissing frantically in fear, but soon relaxed. "Come on out," he said in English. "He says that if we can bust him out of here, he'll give us a ride."

"Got it covered," Hermione said. She cut his chains free, and blasted open the ceiling. The dragon lowered his tail and the five thieves got on his back, and they began a ride over London.

"We're going to Hogwarts," Draco said suddenly.

"Good," Ron said.

"Ah, Princess, I guess that means I'll be seeing you soon," Ky murmured, his eyes to the sky.

"He's getting hungry! We need to jump!" Draco yelled.

They all fell, right into the river that led to the Black Lake. They swam to the shore, and Ron and Harry began changing into clothes Hermione had. Ky, Draco, and Hermione herself remained in their wet clothes.

"You could catch a cold," Hermione warned.

"I'm a pureblood, I don't get muggle colds," Draco informed her coldly.

"Do you _want_ to see something, Granger?" Ky asked.

He smirked as she turned red and glared at him, at an utter loss for words.

The group began hiking towards Hogsmeade. "We've got to somehow break into the school, with it under the control of the Carrows and Snape," Harry began.

Draco and Ky exchanged a smirk and a glance.

"No problem," Ky said with an airy wave of his hand. "Princess can get us in easily."

"Princess?" Harry asked. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

"I don't know if she considers us boyfriend and girlfriend, but we are partners," Ky said, choosing his words carefully.

"Why are you still playing with my sister's feelings, then?" Harry demanded. "Are you just using her for-"

"No!" Ky yelled quickly. "I'm talking about Alice, you twit!"

"Oh," Harry said.

"Come on, I know where we can contact Princess," Ky said.


	3. True Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: A little second-person bonus on our favorite Diggory's feelings on Alice. A little bit of an insight on the years I didn't cover.

You noticed her. It was your first year, and hers. You were in the middle of the beginning.

"Diggory, Wesley!" Professor McGonagall had called. You scurried up to the stool like the shy little boy you were, and placed that hat on your head. You closed your eyes, waiting to hear that voice that Cedric described.

 _"Ah, a Diggory, and dear me, the first boy I've ever seen with the Gift,"_ the Sorting Hat tells you. Part of you is annoyed at his mention of the Gift. _Is that all I'll ever be,_ you wonder. _The only boy in history to have the Gift because somehow the Eleanor line has always had a little girl before then._

 _"HUFFLEPUFF!_ " The hat had declared, almost instantly after you had that thought. You scurried over to the table (because all you did at that age was scurry like a mouse) and sat next to the others. You are proud to be in Hufflepuff. It is a good house, and your immediate family is all in Hufflepuff, and they turned out decent. Right?

But back to her.

"Potter, Alice!" Professor McGongall cried, and all went silent. You noticed the little girl, shorter than most of the others in your year. She has wavy black hair tumbling down her back, spilling down her robes, and green eyes that reminded you vividly of the grass. She sat down, and she did look nervous, but there was a strange confidence about her.

You knew who she was, naturally. The twin sister to the Boy-Who-Lived, the elder sibling of Harry Potter, who killed You-Know-Who as an infant. That's all that you really knew. She was a mystery to you. She was never in any press reports, and she wasn't as talked about as her brother. Still, the name Potter had silenced the Great Hall, although it did take on an atmosphere of disappointment that it wasn't the Boy-Who-Lived.

You could see, even then, the loneliness on her face. There was defiance in that sadness, and you could tell that this girl didn't want pity. You didn't want to give her pity anyway; you just wanted to get to know this enigma.

 _"SLYTHERIN!"_ The hat had screamed, and you thought, there goes my chance with her. There was some applause for her, but you could see the anger on her parents' faces, the rebellious smirk on hers. She strutted over to Slytherin, and you knew that she would thrive there. Yet you wondered what she was really like.

* * *

You saw glimpses of her during the school year. She spoke her mind, yes, but she was a kind little girl, especially for a Slytherin, they said. You wondered if it was right to judge a quarter of the magical world based off of a select group of alumni. You wished that you could get close to her, but she hung around with a gang of preppy bullies. She was the one who didn't belong, you saw that. She was bright, full of laughter and light, and she had her loneliness still there. She wasn't like the other Slytherins. You occasionally got the idea to talk to her, but you never gathered up the courage to speak to her. She was lightning, shocking and amazingly bright.

* * *

She was down underneath the school with Harry Potter, Granger, and Weasley, you heard. She seemed unharmed by the encounter, unlike the rest, although it was also said that she went dark down there. The expression her own parents gave her when they saw her since that fateful night confirmed it for you.

You wanted to comfort her, tell her that you thought whatever she did down there was brave. She was always surrounded by those bullies, though, so you could never get close to her lightning.

You noticed when Dumbledore gave out points to those underneath the school, he never once gave her even a measly point. He even switched up the decorations, and cheated the Slytherins. Sure, you cheered with the rest of your house that someone else won for once. Yet you wondered if maybe, just maybe they might've deserved it this time, because of Alice Potter.

* * *

During your second year, her story became darker. You watched as she struggled with voices she heard, as she tried to supposedly sic a snake on a muggle-born, despite her protests that she didn't. You believed her, but you never got the chance to tell her. Besides, the muggle-born they thought she attacked was a Hufflepuff, one of your own. You couldn't betray him and talk to her. You wondered if maybe you were just being a coward.

She became even more alone, you could see that. She was often by herself, silent, and you wanted to talk to her, but she was untouchable, and irritable, even to those who knew her. Especially to those who knew her.

Gilderoy Lockhart took every class to harass her about fame, something she clearly hated. Look how she was treated because of her brother's fame, her parents' fame, and lack of her own. You hated how he treated her, and one day, you snapped at him, told him to mind his own business and to stay out of her life. That detention was worth it, because of the relieved smile she gave you, although it was almost cancelled out by the cold, hard mask she switched into instantly after you saw her radiant smile.

She went down into the Chamber of Secrets, and saved Ginny Weasley. Yet no one treated her like the hero that her brother and Ron Weasley were. In fact, during the celebration feast, she sat in the corner, didn't eat anything. You almost got up the courage to talk to her, when Cedric had grabbed your arm, and pulled you back into the center of the festivities.

* * *

Her reputation was that she was evil, and she milked it for all its worth. There wasn't a day that passed without Alice Potter spray-painting some part of the castle with her Slytherin gang, engaging in some daring escape from the teachers.

She was an untouchable tempest now, no one you, a mere Hufflepuff, could talk to. She was a part of no heroics that year, not that there were many opportunities, exactly. You thought you might have had a crush, though, on this girl that is both hero and villain at the mere age of thirteen.

 _I'm thirteen, too,_ you reminded yourself. _It's just puberty magic. Right?_

* * *

Wrong.

You were fourteen, and so was she. It was the first day of the term already, and you woke up dreaming about her. You had a feeling the fairies might've been behind that. Apparently, if the fairies found out your true love, they helped you out a bit. She was already in trouble for spray-painting the train. You saw it, Long Live Evil. Her mother was yelling at her during morning breakfast for her purple hair.

Personally, you liked it. Like her, it stood out, and she looked really pretty in purple, like a queen. She glanced at you, and in that moment, you could see in those jade eyes that she had those dreams, too, and she recognized you. You tried to talk to her, but you lost your nerve, and she stormed away. Still, a part of you was thrilled at her attentions.

In Moody's class, you thought he was being cruel. She hissed things at you when you tried to be kind, but you tried to understand. You knew she was supposed to be a villainess. You never believed that, though. You remembered her heroics, when nobody else did. Your kindness touched her, you saw that.

When her name came out of the Goblet of Fire, your heart stopped. You knew she wasn't stupid, wasn't one for unnecessary risks. Something was wrong. You watched her go behind with the others, and you knew that she was getting yelled at for something that wasn't her fault. You realized then that you were scared for her, and you definitely had feelings.

Part of you hurt when Moody controlled her. You hated that he did that to her. You knew then and there that your feelings for her were strong. She was being punished for something that wasn't her fault. You couldn't fathom why he hated her so much. You agreed to help her investigate Moody.

You saw her in her funk, and you weren't afraid to get angry, and she lashed out at you. Yet she was willing to listen to what you had to say. You heard her tell her mother that she wished she'd died in the accident that had given her her lightning scar that you found interesting.

You wondered what was so wrong with her life, beyond the obvious that she wished that she'd died.

* * *

You helped her cheat for the first-task. Everyone else knew, so she might as well, you had reasoned. She was scary when she was angry, you found that out the hard way. You were afraid, even though you denied it. She saw right through you. You realized that despite the fact that a part of her seemed to enjoy causing fear, using her wicked rep, her heart of gold despised it.

You worried when she got burned, and you were relieved when she tamed the dragon, whether it was with Parseltongue or not. You didn't care, you were in love with her already.

* * *

The Yule Ball came around, and naturally, you asked her. To your surprise and relief, she accepted. You spent hours looking for that promise ring, you spent hours getting ready, you wanted to look your best for her. You wanted to be the Prince Charming she deserved.

When you saw her come to the head of the carriage lines, you saw a princess. Head-to-toe in lavender, her purple hair styled, you knew you'd seen the most beautiful girl in the world, and you couldn't believe that she was yours.

You gave her the promise ring, and she accepted. She gave you a chance, and you were not going to screw that up. You and her had a fun night. You danced with her, maybe had a few too many Butterbeers. She agreed to a second date with you. You were thrilled.

* * *

You had gone into McGonagall's office with the others, Cho Chang, Gabrielle Delacour, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger. She told you that you would be perfectly safe, and like an idiot, you drank the goblet. Of course, your first thought as your eyelids betrayed you and began to close, even though you battled them to stay awake, was that she poisoned you like a bloody lunatic. The last hope that ran through your head before all consciousness was lost was that Alice was safe.

At the surface, you awoke, freezing and dripping wet next to her. She dragged you up a ladder, and you snuggled against her in the blankets, and wondered what happened to your brother.

She got the highest score, and you were proud of your girlfriend. You loved her. You knew that as you looked at her, dripping wet and pale, with ice in her hair.

* * *

When she introduced her true family, you were nervous. Her real father liked you, though, and you were a bit intimidated by him, and her true mother, a punk woman, but they were Alice's true family, and were kinder to her than her blood family, so who were you to judge?

You fretted with them when she went into the maze. You screamed and cried with them when she didn't come out. Cedric blamed it all on himself, for being a prat and not taking the cup himself. You're grateful to still have your brother, but you saw the fake Alice, and you knew it was a fake as soon as you laid eyes on the imposter. You knew who Alice truly was.

With the fake's revelation, you began to pray that she was still alive somewhere, and that someone would rescue her.

* * *

Summer went by, and she showed up out of nowhere. You hugged her, hardly believing she was real, except for her scent of apples and cherry blossoms, and the feel of her small, bony frame in your arms, and the matted purple mane your fingers ran through reassuringly. She had her guards down, she trusted you to keep her safe.

She spoke of rebellion and fire. You supported her at every turn, and worried when she got hurt, especially by that Ky Emrys, the other apprentice. You took her out for a night to remember when she got stressed out from organizing the Spark, her rebellion.

When Christmas holidays came around, you wrote to your parents, asking if you could have her over. They wanted to meet your girlfriend, and her blood parents gave their permission. You were so excited, and so was she. You would just look over at her every once in a while, and realize that you loved her, scary as it was sometimes.

Disappointment filled your soul when Dumbledore took her away. You thought of her as you boarded the train, as you reunited with your family. You couldn't stop wondering where she was and if she was okay. As you put your things away, the snow started outside, and you couldn't help but wonder if she was warm.

You were surprised to see her on your doorstep, after all of that. You loved her so much. She got along well with your family, which you appreciated, but you also wanted for her sake, she didn't have much of a blood family and her true family wasn't around often enough.

* * *

You watched her get arrested for treason, and you wanted her brother to go instead for the crime. After all, didn't she have enough to deal with in her life? You watched helplessly. You didn't stop fighting and rebelling, and neither did your other friends. In fact, you took it upon yourself to hex Ky Emrys once a day. You sure made his life hell. Served him right.

She was sentenced to death. As they ushered everyone in to watch, as an example, you couldn't wrap your head around the fact that in mere seconds, she'd be gone. Yet she kept telling you to rebel. You saluted her, with the rest, a gesture the Ministry couldn't stop. She began to display her real power, and you started a fight, so they could lose track of the girl who stood out. A fight spilled onto the streets of London. You followed her.

You followed Death Eaters down the bridge, and you fought your hardest. That was when he fought you. He used the Killing Curse. You knew you were doomed. You last thought was, I'm sorry, Ali.

You watched her beat up the mastermind, Emrys. Yet you couldn't stand to watch pain, and you couldn't stand to watch her become a monster. You managed to reach beyond your state of existence, and tell her to give him mercy. You didn't want her to become a killer. She didn't deserve that.

* * *

Your heart was hurting, watching her grief. You'd've given anything to have been there, to have come back from the dead. You watched Emrys's relatives beg her to help him, and you watch as she agreed to those bloodsuckers' offer. She said she thought you would've wanted her to. You were shocked by her thought of how good you were. You shook your head sadly. You weren't that kind and forgiving.

You watched in pride as she stood up for him, and you sensed something beyond her anger at injustice. You were angry when he kissed her, but angrier when that Skeeter harassed her, and sad again as you watched her revert back to her grief.

He made her happy, you could see that. As much as she refused to admit it to herself, you knew she had feelings for him. You were happy that she was moving on. She couldn't have a dead man, after all. Yet she was afraid of falling in love again, after what happened to you, you observed. You wanted him to put together the pieces of her broken heart.

He all but told her he loved her, at her suggestion. He would've done anything for her, you knew. Much like you did, in life. You knew that he was the right choice for her to move on to. You "shipped" them. Anything to get her heart to stop breaking, to fix it.

You watched as he offered his apartment to her, and watched them comfort each other. You smiled, in spite of yourself and some of the jealousy you felt. She had a worthy suitor, you were sure of that.

* * *

You were proud of your tempest during the barricade. She was a general, and she had power. You watched her fight and kill for her cause, and others do the same. You watched as she gave everything to have him save her brother, and you shook your head sadly. After all the hell her brother had put her through, she was still there for him.

That night, you came back with your power as the first to die fighting. You were happy to see her. Thanks to Korr Ansel, you got to be solid for one hour. All it would take to end it all.

She hugged you, and told you that she missed you. You knew a part of her still loved you, even if her heart had moved on. You saw disappointment on his face. You stared him down, meeting his challenge, but you gave him a look that told him, hopefully, that he would win.

You were distracted in the final battle. That prat that killed you, you had to chase him down. She almost died because of your distraction. You were thankful for him. He helped her, saved her life. She told him that she loved him. You cheered inside. She wouldn't be heartbroken and alone when you left again.

You gave her one last warning, and told him to look after her. You gave the rest of your strength to give her a chance to talk to her true parents one last time.

* * *

You watch and wait. Her children are growing up, and they will be in the center of the next conflict- you can tell, all the knowledge of the universe being at your disposal when you're dead.

You still love Alice Potter, though


	4. My Name is Ella Diggory, Sort Me!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the alternate outcome if Wes had lived/come back to life.

"Be good, Ella," my father said to me.

"I will, I promise," I said, but there was lingering doubt. "Dad... What if I get into Slytherin?"

"Slytherin is a fine house," Mum assured me. "I was in it, you know. As was Merlin Emrys, the greatest wizard of all time. Also, one of your namesakes, Ellie Anders, was one of the bravest witches I knew, and she was in Slytherin."

I nodded slowly. Then I turned to my worst fear, the one I'd felt since I was old enough to know about the house system. "What if I'm in Ravenclaw?"

Mum looked at me with the emerald eyes I hadn't inherited. "Look at me, Eleanor Rhys Diggory. Remember Uncle Ky?"

I nodded, remembering the friend of my mum's who I always called uncle despite being of no blood relations.

"He was in Ravenclaw. You know Aunt Hayden, and Uncle Alex, right? They're Ravenclaws, too," she said.

"I know, I know, it's just that Ravenclaw had the most of the followers of Voldemort," I said. Several people looked at me in fear. "What?" I barked at them.

"Sh," Dad said, looking at me. "I know we say his name in our home, Ella, but at school, it might be best if you don't."

I folded my arms over my chest. "Fine." I said.

The guard gave the five-minute whistle. "I guess you'd better get going," Mum said. "Remember to write to us. And I know you're worried, but I promise, we'll be proud no matter what house you're in."

I nodded, and boarded the train. I sat down in a compartment, where a boy with curly black hair and rust-colored eyes was tinkering around with a little pipe-cleaner helicopter.

"Hey, Jacen," I said, recognizing the boy as Uncle Ky's son. "Where's Jana?"

"She's in the loo," he explained as he looked up. Right on cue, his twin, a girl with wild black curls in a high ponytail streaming over her shoulders walked into the room, followed by three others. "I found some others in need of a place to sit," she said.

"Well, let them in, then," Jacen said, half-annoyed. Jana did so, sitting next to me.

A girl with coppery red curls and tortishell "nerd" frames sat next to me shyly. "I'm Terra Williams," she explained. "I'm new to this whole magic thing. This teacher, Neville Longbottom, I think he was called- came to my parents' flat, and told me that I was a witch! Imagine the looks on their faces!"

The other two new people laughed. "I take it that you're muggle-born?" I asked the other two. One of them nodded, but the other shook her head.

"My name is Aquarius Malfoy," she said, shaking her head.

The entire compartment went quiet at that little realization.

"My name's Galen James," the boy with blond hair said. "My mum's a Squib, and my dad's a muggle. So I consider myself muggle-born."

"Wow," I marveled.

"So who are you?" Terra asked.

"I'm Ella Diggory," I said.

"This twerp is Jacen," Jana said, elbowing her twin.

"And this harpy is Jana," Jacen finished.

"Are you twins?" Aquarius asked.

"Yep," they chorused.

"So, what house do you want to be in?" Terra asked. "I'm particular to Ravenclaw-"

"NO!" Aquarius cried. "You do not want to be in Ravenclaw!"

"Why?" Terra asked.

"Yeah, I thought it was the house of intelligence," Galen chimed in.

Jacen and Jana shared an uneasy glance.

"Have you heard about the Death Eaters?" I asked.

"No," Terra replied.

"I have," Galen said.

"Well, you seem about fourteen years ago, there was this dark wizard, they call him Voldemort-"

Jacen, Jana, Aquarius, and Galen all flinched. "Stop being such babies," I retorted. "He's gone forever, isn't he?"

"That's what they said the first time," Galen said fearfully.

I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, You-Know-Who gathered a regiment called Death Eaters. The first time, Slytherins were the majority of the army, since You-Know-Who was in Slytherin, you see. The second time, Ravenclaws made up the majority of the student army."

"What made it change?" Galen asked.

"Our father," Jacen said in an almost whisper. "He was You-Know-Who's apprentice for a long time, and until the Battle of London Bridge in 1996, he worked for the dark side, recruiting students over to You-Know-Who. After that, he switched sides, but the damage was already done."

"Wow," Terra said. "I think I'd rather be in Gryffindor."

* * *

The Sorting was finally here. My hands felt clammy as I waited for a stupid hat to judge me. I was pretty close to the beginning, so I knew that I would be first out of all my friends I'd met on the train.

"Diggory, Eleanor!" I started up towards the stool, and the hat was placed onto my head.

"Ah, another Diggory. You have your mother in you, rather strongly. A curious mind, that's good," a voice said in my head. "Very clever, I see, and some wisdom is in reach. Daring and courage is there, most definitely. A thrill-seeker, also, I see."

"I'm sorry, but you're definitely not Gryffindor, like your uncle. Not Hufflepuff either, like your father. There is a possibility for Slytherin, like your mother. But the house for your would be-"

 _Don't say it, don't say it._ I gripped the edged of the stool.

"Ravenclaw would suit you best, dear." I sighed and let go.

_I don't want to be in that house. Not with its reputation._

"Often there needs to be an individual who can change the reputation of the house. I can see some of your father's goodness and your mother's selflessness in you. Maybe you can act upon it in Ravenclaw. Become a trailblazer like your mother did for Slytherin."

I nodded. _I'm ready. Sort me._

" _RAVENCLAW_!" The hat yelled out. I smiled, and sat the hat down, and joined the table of blue and bronze. I smiled as Jacen and Terra joined me.

* * *

I'm exhausted from my first day of classes. It was all so exhilarating. Professor Flitwick, the head of house, was really funny and great, so I enjoyed Charms a lot. Potions with Professor Slughorn was very enjoyable, and I left feeling more curious than I did to start. Professor Gage, the Transfiguration professor, was a bit more serious, and mechanical, but she seemed okay.

The castle was so huge! I might need a map to go through it all! It's just all so amazing! Even though magic'a been a part of my life for years and years, it still amazes me every single time, and I always can't wait to study more.

Uncle Ky, I can't wait to bring your house to glory. There's been whispers already, and smiles from the other Ravenclaws. Some of them can be cold, others a bit strange, but as the Cheshire Cat once said, we're all mad here. I'm on a roller coaster that only goes up, and I have a feeling that these seven years are going to be a blast.

Tell Mum and Dad that I love them, and tell Aunt Sophie that I said hi. Thanks for being the first person to go to if I got into Ravenclaw. Hopefully the others in the family, particularly Uncle Harry, will be alright.

Lots of love,

Ella


	5. Blood on His Hands

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This focuses on Ky and his Healer career directly after the war.

Being a Healer was exhausting. Ky enjoyed, no, relished the hard work. He only thought about biology and Herbology for a moment, and didn't have to answer the other thoughts that plagued his mind.

Honestly, though, those very thoughts were the reason he decided to be a Healer in the first place. The Ravenclaw had a lot of regrets and doubts to deal with, and had them ever since the Second Wizarding War.

He had been on the wrong side. Ky had done things he wasn't proud of to muggle-borns, and honestly, some of them still recognized him after all those years, the proud, foolish young man in the black cloak who'd turned up his nose at them all.

The blood of many innocents was on his hands. He dreamed their faces many nights, alone in his flat. So many regrets, so many instances when he wished that he hadn't gone with what authority, that he'd stood up for what he knew, even then, deep in his heart, was right.

_That's why you weren't in Gryffindor,_ he reminded himself as he began on the paperwork in the office of his ward at the end of his shift. _You were a gutless wonder, even at the age of eleven._

Okay, that did sting a little, coming from himself. After all, he did have some courage, didn't he? Like today. . .

* * *

An Auror stakeout with the Chosen One had gone _badly_ , to say the least. The hit-wizards were pulling in stretcher after stretcher of young and reckless Aurors who were badly injured and in need of quick, confident intervention to last more than another ten minutes.

Ky had thrown on his Healing Gloves, and had jumped right into it. Some of the Healer initiates, like his own apprentice, Gianna-Grace Marie, were horrified by the sight of all that blood. He didn't mind, after all, his nightmares were swimming with it, so it had stopped bothering him a long time ago.

Besides, there was no time to be squeamish about blood. There were lives to save, and you had to be force of calm in their fighting, panicked moments where the patients were struggling to remain alive, struggling to evade Death for a short time coming at least.

Fay Dunbar in particular was a mess. She was in need of an abdominal surgery, with several internal organs ripped to shreds. Ky looked up at the initiates in their pastel, sterile work robes, who were standing against the wall, watching the Head Healer of the Emergency Department do his work.

"What are you standing around for?" He demanded. "There are lives to save. Marie! Fawley! Evans! Help me with this one. The rest of the Aurors can be dealt with quickly! Use your best judgement! Come on, we've got to go repair several internal organs!"

The said initiates rushed over, as the others started running around, trying to talk to their patients and do their work. Well, except for Sunshine Flynn, who had been working the entire time on Harry Potter, gathering Blood-Replenishing potions and such.

_Merlin bless Flynn_ , Ky thought gratefully, and he started pushing the stretcher with Dunbar on it to a private room where they could all begin working on her. They were having to do work that others would find disgusting and gross and icky, but they couldn't think about it.

Yet you could see how calm Dunbar was when he made her drink the Dreamless Sleep Draught. She trusted them with her life.

* * *

That still rang with him, even hours after the group had come in. Fay Dunbar at least trusted the Healers, trusted him with her life, with her own mortality, such a precious, fragile thing.

He remembered how Jack Evans started panicking when he found out how the gallbladder had pretty much exploded.

* * *

"Pull yourself together or get out!" Ky had barked. "Fay is depending on you to get her through, to make her pain stop! But you aren't going to do anything if you keep panicking like a Crup after their second tail is removed! So are you in or out?"

Evans nodded shakily, and calmed down noticeably. "I'm in," he said decisively.

"Good." Ky began working on getting a new gallbladder installed.

* * *

He sighed, as he filled out the details of who he'd treated over the day, and those thoughts plagued his mind more and more. It was strange, seeing that sort of trust in his hands, especially after the war. Then again, there was a patient every once in a whole that had heard his reputation, what he'd done, and would refuse treatment from him. He couldn't blame them.

Ky looked up at the number he had written on a memo taped to the wall in front of his desk. _97_. He had, over the course of the entire war, killed 97 people. Some people couldn't believe it, but he could. After all, he did see ninety-seven faces whenever he fell asleep, even though most of them were faceless muggles that had been the result of terrorist attacks given by the Death Eaters.

He then looked at the numbers he tacked up in red ink, the number of lives he had saved. He added another tic to the lost. _437 lives saved._ He kept counting even after he'd doubled, and probably tripled the number of lives he'd ended.

It reminded him that he was at least courageous enough to dive right in and work hard when no one else would. Maybe because he still had something to prove to himself.

"Healer Emrys?" Ky turned to see one of the comfort-providing Healers, ones who did tasks that most would consider menial in a hospital.

She stepped forwards. "Fay Dunbar's awake, and she'd like to come so she can thank you personally for the surgery that saved her life."

Ky nodded. "I'll be there in a moment."


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little thing about what the twins’ friend, the real Mara-Jade Evans, was up to during their first few years at Hogwarts.

Mara-Jade Evans hated the Frog Choir. Simple as that. She remembered, clear as yesterday what had led to her object of hatred.

* * *

It had been a manic Monday. Jacen was busy with his other friends (his Ravenclaw friends, she noted with a sour taste), Peter and Kieran, probably doing something stupid in the library. Her friends happened to be library people. Don't get her wrong, she adored the library. After being a runaway foster child, she hadn't been in school all that much, and didn't know a lot, so the library was definitely enlightening. Hanging around with her friends, she learned how to read a bit better, since her basic skills didn't always cover the big, thick textbooks she often read with said friends. Well, they were in Ravenclaw, after all. Every single one of them except for Rowan Skywalker, that bloody brave Gryffindor.

Back to her manic Monday. She supposed she had it coming. That day, Mara-Jade was looking to get in trouble, just because she was bored, despite the mountain of homework that piled around her like her coffin, which seemed to loom in her nightmares and mind. The wild side was never far, though, for Mara-Jade.

What had she done? Oh boy, she was in big trouble, she knew it. She'd gotten some inspiration from the paintings that were down in the Slytherin dungeons, and she'd decided to mark-up the long wall along the Great Hall with an artistic rendition of the Dark Mark (which she achieved by copying the image with a handy spell Rowan taught her that made quoting textbooks easier, because let's face it, her drawing was horrendous) and enlarged the image, and wrote in large, barely legible capital letters, _LONG LIVE EVIL_.

Maybe it wasn't the most tasteful, with the Knights of Walpurgis, but she knew Jacen and Ella would find it very funny, in their anti-Knights campaign, in a sick, twisted, irony-filled way. The thing was, she was humming this Disney song from one of the many foster homes she'd been shunted around.

_"One jump ahead of the bread line,_

_One swing, ahead of the sword_

_I steal only what I can't afford- and that's everything!"_

"Miss Evans- what is that tune?" Professor Flitwick had asked her when the elven man finally caught up to her. She shrugged in response. It didn't matter, at least not to her. He smiled. "You have talent my dear. I think perhaps you'd like to refine those talents, don't you think?"

She stared at him in disbelief. "I'm not joining the Frog Choir, if that's what you're saying!"

"Oh, but Miss Evans, would you prefer detention for that rather distasteful display that could be considered terrorism, and possible trouble with the Aurors that could even lead to a sentence in Erewhon, the new prison that was established after Minister Shacklebolt declared inhumane, or you could just join the Frog Choir and I will forget all about you," he said in a gambit.

* * *

Mara-Jade of course decided that the Frog Choir was a better sentence than Erewhon, and she, being a sneaky Slytherin, figured that a show choir was easier to slither out of than a prison sentence and a criminal record. She was very wrong.

First of all, she had to get a toad, despite the name being Frog Choir, because Professor Flitwick wanted to make sure that everyone had the proper accompaniment of the bass of the croaking of toads.

"It especially helps with that alto voice," he'd told her when she had complained about just how not cool toads were, and how she didn't want to blow her one-pet allowance on a stupid toad for the choir she'd been blackmailed into. Of course, she had to buy a toad since Flitwick still had the dirt on her.

Being in the Frog Choir also meant practices. Multiple practices. Often early in the morning, before Mara-Jade was ever coherent. Her free time was rarely spent in the library just goofing off anymore. If she was in the library, it was because she needed to get a homework assignment done, and/or she needed Jacen's help. Any other time, she was practicing. How she hated practicing.

She loved singing or whistling or humming tunes as she went down the corridors, separate from the other Slytherins, or at least she used to. Now that she was singing every free hour, she rested her voice in between classes. She had a feeling, though, that she wouldn't want to now anyways, even if she could use her voice.

Flitwick always seemed under the impression that Mara-Jade loved the Frog Choir. Sure, she plastered that grin on her face whenever she was within a twenty-mile radius of the tiny professor, but that was always. She remembered the last meeting of the year- June 25, after all of the craziness with the Knights of Walpurgis.

* * *

"Students," he began in his squeaky voice. "I am glad to have gotten to know each and every one of you as the year has gone by. The final performance is optional, and I know I'll see you all again next year."

Mara-Jade had turned to leave, now that her sentence was completed, when Professor Flitwick stopped her.

"My dear, aren't you going to perform at the End-of-Year banquet?" He asked. "You truly have grown to be a strong singer, Miss Evans."

"I've finished with the Frog Choir," Mara-Jade replied evenly. "I don't like it."

"But Miss Evans, you loved it," Professor Flitwick protested.

"I hated it," she sneered. "So unless you're going to chain me here with blackmail, I'll be leaving." With that, she'd stormed out of the classroom. Best decision of her life.

* * *

Now, Mara-Jade couldn't even hum without dreadful memories resurfacing of the Frog Choir.

"You used to sing a lot," Jacen told her one day, years from her awful second year. "Think you could give me a tune, Mars?"

She shook her head. Mara-Jade despised singing, ever since the day she joined the Frog Choir.


End file.
